This invention relates to optical fiber connectors.
Optical fiber connectors are necessary throughout lightwave systems wherever it is desired to optically couple two or more fibers together. Typical connectors employ a glass ferrule in which the fibers are situated. The ferrules are inserted within opposite ends of a sleeve so that the ferrules, and therefore the fibers, are aligned. In one form of connector, the ferrule is locked into the sleeve by means of rotating the ferrule a quarter turn until a tab on the sleeve is engaged by a collar mounted around the ferrule (See, for example U.S. Pat. No. 4,738,508 issued to Palmquist). Other types of connectors employ a latching mechanism to lock the ferrule into the sleeve (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,327,964 issued to Haesly, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,611,887 issued to Glover). Latching mechanisms have also been proposed for male-female optical connector configurations (See, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 4,225,214 issued to Hodge et al). Male-female connectors have also included means for rotating one of the plugs in order to engage locking tabs formed on the other plug (See U.S. Pat. No. 4,429,938 issued to Flor).
While adequate for most applications, most presently-available connectors cannot be easily adapted for use where a high density of fiber arrays is required. For example, in providing lightwave communications to each home, the fibers must be housed in underground closures where space is severely limited. This may require, for example, an array of 864 fibers in a panel measuring 38 cm high, 46 cm wide and 25 cm deep, which translates into a center-to-center spacing for the fibers of just 1.02 cm. In such dense arrays, it is difficult, if not impossible, for a technician to remove a fiber which requires either rotation or latch tripping by insertion of a hand around the connector in the space between adjacent connectors.
In order to deal with this problem, it has been proposed to provide a connector with a special locking collar including tabs engaging holes in the surface of the sleeve so that the fibers can be inserted and removed by a special tool (See U.S. patent application of R. L. Hinckley filed on an even date herewith).
It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide an alternative design of optical fiber connectors which can be used conveniently in dense fiber arrays without the need for any tool for engagement or release of the optical connector.